Description:Amanda Smith came to Birmingham in 1879. Born into slavery in the United States, Amanda Smith's father bought his freedom and that of his family. Smith herself was educated at home, and in 1863 moved with her second husband to New York City. It was here that she began her long career of preaching, and by 1869 she was regularly attending African-American churches in New York and New Jersey. Amanda Smith's success before a largely white audience at a 'holiness' camp meeting in 1870 led her to commit herself entirely to evangelism.
Travelling widely over the next few years, she came to England in 1878, and attended a meeting of the Birmingham's 'Ladies Negro's Friend Society' in 1879. This visit started a relationship with the Birmingham society that was to continue for the rest of Smith's life. In 1890 she returned to the United States with the idea of opening an orphanage for African-American children. The 'Ladies Negro's Friend Society' helped to fund this mission.